'Individualism-collectivism' as an explanatory device for mental illness stigma

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate whether the cross-cultural value paradigm 'individualism-collectivism' is a useful explanatory model for mental illness stigma on a cultural level. Using the snowball sampling method, a quantitative questionnaire survey of 305 individuals from four UK-based cultural groups (white-English, American, Greek/Greek Cypriot, and Chinese) was carried out. The validated questionnaires 'Community Attitudes to Mental Illness scale' and the 'vertical-horizontal individualism-collectivism scale' were used. The results revealed that the more stigmatising a culture's mental illness attitudes are, the more likely collectivism effectively explains these attitudes. In contrast, the more positive a culture's mental illness attitudes, the more likely individualism effectively explains attitudes. It is concluded that a consideration of the individualism-collectivism paradigm should be included in any future research aiming to provide a holistic understanding of the causes of mental illness stigma, especially when the cultures stigmatization levels are particularly high or low.